The skin of an aircraft is typically composed of multiple, individual pieces that must be securely attached to both one another and/or to a support structure. During the manufacture and assembly process, the aforementioned individual skin pieces are drilled with holes so that they may be via fasteners and/or rivets. It is oftentimes required to prepare the holes of these components prior to attachment. This preparation of the holes typically requires that the holes be cleaned prior to rivet insertion, because they may contain residual dirt and contaminants, such as lubricant and/or solvent.
Preparation techniques currently used in the art include inserting or pushing a swab of gauze through an open fastener hole using a tool or poking device such as a screw driver. Other techniques currently utilized in the art entail inserting a cotton tipped stick or swab through an open fastener hole. Prior to insertion into the holes, the gauze or cotton tipped stick of the aforementioned techniques are oftentimes soaked or saturated in Methyl Propyl Ketone (MPK) or other cleaning solvents to aid in the removal of contaminants and dirt from the holes.
The above-described hole preparation techniques have drawbacks however. For example, hole preparation, specifically the cleaning of the hole prior to fastener installation, accounts for a significant amount of time, manpower and resources during the aircraft assembly process. Furthermore, the aforementioned hole preparation techniques can be somewhat tedious and fatiguing to the mechanic operator performing the task. In addition, waste is generated as a result of the techniques currently employed to prepare holes which must be disposed of properly, adding additional cost to the assembly process. Therefore, given the number of holes on a standard commercial aircraft, and given the fact that typically, each and every hole must be manually prepared, it would be desirable if hole preparation techniques were made more efficient in terms of time consumption and cost.
The hole preparation process is typically a multi-step process. During the process the mechanic or technician may prepare upwards of 1000 holes during his or her shift. This process is oftentimes preceded by a process of saturating the cotton swabs or gauze with cleaning solvents prior to insertion into the hole to aid in the removal of contaminants, which requires additional time. Next, the swab is forced or inserted into the hole. The force required by the mechanic or technician to pass a cotton swab through an individual hole can oftentimes be significant, making the process laborious when repeated many times. Once the swab is passed through the hole, the next step the mechanic or technician performs is to analyze both the hole and swab for dirt and contaminants to determine if an additional treatment is required. Oftentimes a second pass with a new swab is required to ensure the hole is, in fact, clean. As a result, hole preparation sometimes requires a significant amount of time due to the number of holes on an aircraft structure and the multiple steps involved to insure they are prepared properly, requiring the employment of multiple operators or technicians.
Furthermore, as previously mentioned, the current preparation techniques can generate large amounts of waste. Each time a piece of gauze or a cotton swab is passed through a hole, waste is generated. Also, as previously mentioned, a single gauze swab may not be enough to thoroughly clean a hole, necessitating multiple passes through a hole using multiple swabs. Thus, to thoroughly and correctly clean holes prior to rivet or fastener insertion, a large amount of waste material may be generated. In addition, the gauze or cotton is typically treated with solvents, and therefore may require additional disposal steps.
Also, another drawback typically associated with the above-described techniques is that as a swab is pushed through a hole, it exits out the opposite site of the hole where it typically drops onto the factory floor or another section of the aircraft structure. When the swab contacts the aircraft or after exiting the hole, it can transfer contaminants to the other aircraft structure. As a result, the aircraft must be cleaned to remove the contaminants that were possibly transferred and the used swabs that have accumulated as a result of the cleaning must be collected and disposed of, both of which can contribute additional time and manpower to the preparation process.
Accordingly, there is a need in the art to provide a cleaning apparatus and method that allows for convenient and efficient preparation and cleaning of holes prior to rivet or fastener insertion. Also, there is a further need for an apparatus and method for preparing holes prior to fastener insertion that reduces the amount of waste produced during the preparation process.